Going http to https? Be sure Google Analytics tracks referrals
If either of these statements apply to you, this will be of interest:
- "Direct" traffic spike since changing to HTTPS.
- "Referral" loss since changing to HTTPS.
The New Zealand Tourism Guide team have become aware of an issue that can occur when a website is changed from HTTP to HTTPS, and this may be affecting you.
If you recently changed to SSL / HTTPS (i.e. you now have the green padlock showing on the address bar when viewing your own website) or you are considering changing to SSL / HTTPS soon, it is important that redirects on your web server are implemeted correctly.
After a change to HTTPS, some businesses are finding that their Direct traffic increases significantly, while their Referral traffic decreases, or even dissappears completely. The articles linked to below explain more, and detail the important steps that need to be followed.
- Going http to https? Be sure Google Analytics tracks referrals
- In-Depth HTTP to HTTPS Migration Guide for WordPress
Please inform us if you have recently converted your website to HTTPS, then we will update your links on our website, which will ensure that referral traffic from us is recorded correctly in your Google Analytics, even if you have not yet corrected the HTTPS redirect issue at your end.
